September 2012: Local Literacies in a Global WorldLiteracy teaching and learning occur in the local classroom within individual, personal relationships. Yet, at the same time, rapid changes at the global level are impacting local classrooms at increasing rates. Groups of people from distant geographical areas now share the same classroom spaces. For this issue of Language Arts, we seek manuscripts that address the relationship between global and local languages and literacies. What responses have occurred in school literacy programs and/or practices as local demographics change due to (im)migrations? In what ways do population shifts prompt us to think about the interrelatedness of language and literacy? What do the changes mean for local classroom discourses? When multiple Englishes bump up against each other, does it change the way we think of English? What does literacy teaching and learning look like in this new world for students who are bior multiliterate? Are new literacies facilitating new and different collaborations for those who now live transnationally? (Submission deadline: May 15, 2011)

November 2012: DevelopmentInnovative practices are often presented as one-sizefits-all for elementary grades. But teachers know that a practice like reading workshop in Kindergarten is so different from reading workshop in fourth grade.This is at least partly because Kindergarteners are different from their older peers. In fact, elementary years are some of the most important years in human development. Language Arts seeks manuscripts that uncover developmental differences among children that infl uence their literacy learning across the elementary years and how teachers are responding to those differences. What are the developmental differences among children that might affect literacy (and literary) learning? How do theories of human development, which are usually individually focused, merge with what we know about social and sociocultural theories to present a complex picture of literacy development? What adjustments do teachers make to programs and practices to accommodate developmental needs? How does knowledge of child development affect language arts teachers’ decision making and practice? (Submission deadline: July 15, 2011)

January 2013: Inquiries and InsightsIn this unthemed issue, we feature your current questions and transformations as educators, community members, students, and researchers. Many directions are possible in this issue. What tensions do you see in literacy education today? What do readers of Language Arts need to notice and think about? What inquiry work have you done that can stretch the field of literacy and language arts? Describe your process of learning about literature, literacy, culture, social justice, and language. What new literacy practices do you see in communities, after-school programs, and classrooms? What supports these practices? What is getting in the way of change? What connections are adults and children making as they engage in the art of language? Join us in creating a collection of inquiries and insights. (Submission deadline: September 15, 2011)

March 2013: Literate LunchAs attention to sustainable living has grown, local schools and districts have responded with both classroom gardens and larger district gardens to supply cafeteria food. Farm-to-school programs now exist in places as different as the large urban centers of Detroit and D.C. and the border areas of Texas’s Rio Grande Valley. But, at this point, it’s difficult to differentiate between superficial changes and those that ask students to think deeply about the far-reaching impact of local, individual decisions. For this issue of Language Arts, we seek manuscripts related to ecoliteracy. How has the greening of schools affected critical literacy and ecoliteracy practices? In what ways has the nation’s growing attention to children’s health and food issues impacted literacy teaching and learning? What sorts of texts and/or collaborations have been undertaken to examine these global issues? What opportunities for integrated/interdisciplinary units of study have been taken up? How have students been prompted to explore and reflect on specific places? Have classrooms and/or districts tackled the related social justice and globalization issues? (Submission deadline: November 15, 2011)

May 2013: Community Literacy/iesGuest Editors: Rebecca Rogers and Inda Schaenen.Literacy/ies as sociocultural activities cannot be separated from the communities in which they are practiced. With literacy a continuing focus of educational policy, collaborations—between schools, families, universities, businesses, and cultural institutions—have been created to cultivate literacy development between and within communities. This issue of Language Arts explores how literacy-related collaborationsinfluence and serve various communities. How have teachers, coaches, administrators, teaching artists, university faculty, parents, and children leveraged school-based literacy teaching and learning to serve community needs? How have community literacy practices been used to facilitate schoolbased literacy learning? What have we learned about literacy learning and development from educational interactions across communities? (Submission deadline: January 15, 2012)